Casting the Roles in your Story + Giveaways!

Happy Monday! Today I'm choosing happiness! I hope you are too.

Because I'm choosing happiness today, I decided to talk about one of the happy things I do when plotting a book. I cast my characters.

That is, I search the internet for photographs to represent the characters in my book. And not just the characters, but the settings and clothing as well!

This past week, my first full-length Regency novel, The Lost Lieutenant, released. I am excited about this story, and I thought I would show you some of the photographs that I chose to illustrate the story as I plotted it out.

Out of an abundance of caution, I have removed the pictures I posted here. I don't wish to violate any copyright laws. Instead, I have posted the pictures to a Pinterest Board, that you can visit by clicking on this link: 

https://www.pinterest.com/ericavetsch/the-lost-lieutenant-inspiration-pics/

This is Johnny Lee Miller, who played Edmund Bertram in Jane Austen's Mansfield Park. I chose him as the template for my hero, Evan Eldridge, because A) I like Johnny Lee Miller and B) he fit what I thought Evan would look like when he wore his "earl persona."

This is Frances O'Connor, the template for my heroine, Diana Seaton. She has just the right amount of strength and vulnerability, especially in this photo, to depict my heroine.

Diana and Evan together as the Earl and Countess of Whitelock. :) 

I needed some ideas and inspiration for the dilapidated manor house that Evan inherits: White Haven. In the story, he's got to get the manor remodeled and repaired in time for a visit from the Prince Regent, and it's a monumental task. 

In my mind, a totally restored White Haven would look something like this beautiful Georgian manor house.

And what Regency historical is complete without the right wardrobe? Empire waistlines, pelisses, spencers, breeches, Hessians? My heroine is the daughter of a Duke and is being introduced to society, so Diana needed snazzy clothes. And my hero is a former member of the 95th Rifles, whose uniforms were green with pewter buttons. He also got a complete makeover to turn him into a gentleman (with varying results.)

My question for you is: If you are a writer, do you 'cast' your characters with photographs?

If you're a reader, does it help you visualize the characters to see the photos they are based upon?

Best-selling, award-winning author Erica Vetsch loves Jesus, history, romance, and sports. She’s a transplanted Kansan now living in Minnesota, and she is married to her total opposite and soul mate! When she’s not writing fiction, she’s planning her next trip to a history museum and cheering on her Kansas Jayhawks and New Zealand All Blacks. You can connect with her at her website, www.ericavetsch.com where you can read about her books and sign up for her newsletter, and you can find her online at https://www.facebook.com/EricaVetschAuthor/ where she spends way too much time!

You can Order The Lost Lieutenant at: https://amzn.to/32NYANi and pre-order The Gentleman Spy at https://amzn.to/2qOjkHD

About The Lost Lieutenant:


He's doing what he can to save the Prince Regent's life . . . but can he save his new marriage as well?


Evan Eldridge never meant to be a war hero--he just wanted to fight Napoleon for the future of his country. And he certainly didn't think that saving the life of a peer would mean being made the Earl of Whitelock. But when the life you save is dear to the Prince Regent, things can change in a hurry.

Now Evan has a new title, a manor house in shambles, and a stranger for a bride, all thrust upon him by a grateful ruler. What he doesn't have are all his memories. Traumatized as a result of his wounds and bravery on the battlefield, Evan knows there's something he can't quite remember. It's important, dangerous--and if he doesn't recall it in time, will jeopardize not only his marriage but someone's very life.

Readers who enjoy Julie Klassen, Carolyn Miller, and Kristi Ann Hunter will love diving into this brand-new Regency series filled with suspense, aristocratic struggles, and a firm foundation of faith.

There are several giveaways going on right now involving The Lost Lieutenant:

A JustReads Tour giveaway that includes a $25 Amazon or B&N gift card and a Bible Verse sign: 

https://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2b09c62e813/? 

And: from I Read With Audra Publicity Tours:

Pique Practice with Guest Carolyn Miller

Erica Vetsch here:  It is my absolute pleasure to host Carolyn Miller here at Seekerville today. We met in person at the 2018 ACFW Conference, and I can tell you, she is a delight. (With an awesome accent!) Thanks so much, Carolyn, for stopping by Seekerville!

Pique Practice by Carolyn Miller

‘She sells seashells by the seashore.’

You’re familiar with this tongue-twister, right? It’s said the “She” who sells seashells was Mary Anning, a poor, marginalized Englishwoman who despite her meagre education went on to discover some of England’s most spectacular fossils of the early 1800s, and eventually to be regarded as one of Britain’s most influential women of science.

My interest was piqued by this woman’s remarkable story, and by the fact that some of her most important discoveries happened during the Regency period – something which excited this historical author’s heart, and led me to write a novel based around the fossil-hunting mania of the Regency period (A Hero for Miss Hatherleigh, releasing March 19).

It’s funny how such a random thing as Googling the background of a tongue-twister can provide inspiration for a novel. When I look back on the novels I’ve written so far, it’s been a wide variety of things that have piqued enough interest to inspire a novel. For my first published novel, The Elusive Miss Ellison, I was inspired by Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and Georgette Heyer, which helped inform the plot and wit and characters.

I’ve been inspired by locations (Bath! Brighton! Derbyshire! Scotland!), castle images, the challenge of presenting an unsympathetic character sympathetically, historic events, Bible verses, sermons, maps, garage sale finds, among a million other things that have piqued my interest.

The very first novel-length story I wrote was a contemporary story based around the Winter Olympics, because my interest was piqued by the sight of a US male athlete holding hands with an Aussie girl. What was their story? I had to know. (And when I couldn’t find out, I made it up!)

I love how the very randomness of such things can get the creative juices flowing. And in today’s world, it seems we’re surrounded by such opportunities:

·       News items

·       TV shows, films, books

·       Photographs, pictures and paintings

·       Music

·       The Internet (oh my, it’s a land of a million rabbit trails, isn’t it?)

·       And so much more…

Even our mundane chores down the street can provide inspiration as we overhear a snippet of conversation, or witness an awkward scene between friends or family members at a café, school or supermarket.

But being surrounded as we are by so many sources of potential inspiration can present an author with some questions:

·       How do you decide what is story-worthy?

·       How do you record your story ideas? In a notebook, on your phone, scribbled notes on the back of receipts? Or are you more organized and use particular apps and programs like Evernote to record your ‘piqued interest’?

·       What do you do to store these random story ideas?

I’m still trying to figure a lot of this out. I’m a historical author, but I have plenty of half-finished contemporary stories floating around my computer. Some of the scenarios I’ve been able to translate into Regency settings, but I figure some will never be unleashed on the world (and that might be a good thing!). For me a creative idea has to have enough substance, be plottable, hold enough magic so I remain excited enough to write 90,000 words – or at least until I get to 45K, when I might need to practise ‘butt in seat’ technique to reach ‘The End.’

Some items of ‘piqued interest’ will be relegated to secondary storylines, subplots, etc. That’s okay. I think the best stories are those with multiple story strands that pique the reader’s interest until the end.

As for my recording of such moments, I’ll admit I’m a bit of a mess. Yes, I have Evernote, but I don’t use it as I could. Last month I was doing a spring clean of my office and desk and discovered a huge array of tattered notebooks and scraps of paper, all containing plenty of – you guessed it – story ideas and clippings of things that had once piqued my interest. What to do with them? Good question.

I know I’m not offering many answers, and that’s because I’d love to hear your thoughts about what your ‘pique practices’ may be. Sharing is caring, so please let me know what you do when your creativity is piqued by answering these questions.

Authors:

What’s a random thing that has sparked your creativity and turned an ‘I wonder…’ into a published novel? 

Readers:

Do you read author’s notes in a novel where they give an explanation for why they wrote the story? Have you come across anything that particularly piqued your interest and you think could be story worthy?

 Giveaway: Carolyn is offering an ebook 

or paperback of her upcoming release A Hero for Miss Hatherleigh to one commentator…

Carolyn Miller lives in the beautiful Southern Highlands of New South Wales, Australia, with her husband and four children. Together with her husband she has pastored a church for ten years, and worked as a public high school English and Learning and Support teacher.  A longtime lover of romance, especially that of Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer’s Regency era, Carolyn holds a BA in English Literature, and loves drawing readers into fictional worlds that show the truth of God’s grace in our lives. Her Regency novels include The Elusive Miss Ellison, The Captivating Lady Charlotte, The Dishonorable Miss DeLancey, Winning Miss Winthrop, Miss Serena's Secret, The Making of Mrs. Hale, and A Hero for Miss Hatherleigh, all available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Christianbook, etc.

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